SOCI-1101Guidelines for the application paper:
Sociological Autobiography
Below are the guidelines for the application paper that you are required to complete for this course
PAPER FORMAT
Length: 1200-1800 words
Spacing: Double
Font: 12 pt. New Times Roman
Margin: 1” all sides
Include a cover page
Include Reference page if appropriate
PLAGIARISM
Plagiarism of any kind will not be tolerated. This means that you must submit your own work in your own words. Quotes taken from other authors must be quoted and cited correctly. The penalties for plagiarism are outlined in the Student Handbook, and will be enforced to the fullest extent.
HOW TO WRITE YOUR PAPER
“Neither the life of an individual nor the history of a society can be understood without understanding both…. No social study that does not come back to the problems of biography, of history and of their intersections within a society has completed its intellectual journey…. The sociological imagination enables us to grasp history and biography and the relations between the two in society…. For that imagination is the capacity to shift from one perspective to another— from the political to the psychological; from examination of a single family to comparative assessments of the national budgets of the world; from the theological school to the military establishment; from considerations of an oil industry to studies of contemporary poetry. It is the capacity to range from the most impersonal and remote transformations to the most intimate features of the human self— and to see the relations between the two.” — C. Wright Mills.
Write an autobiographical essay describing the intersection between your biography and history using your “sociological imagination” as discussed in C. Wright Mills’ essay “The Promise.” What sociological factors have shaped your life so far? Your goal is to demonstrate your sociological understanding and learn more about course concepts, and about yourself, by thinking about how the two intertwine. The key to showing a sociological understanding is to connect your personal experiences, behaviors, and attitudes to the larger social structure. For example, think about your cultural background, socialization, race, ethnicity, class, gender or sexual orientation. How have any of these factors or the intersection of any of them given you advantages or disadvantages throughout life? What factors have shaped your parents’ lives, and how have those impacted your life? Make sure to use sociological concepts and theories throughout your paper, and italicize them.